


Tiny Drabbles/Oneshots

by mymidsummersunshine



Series: Cat AU [3]
Category: Men's Hockey RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Domestic, Cats, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-08
Updated: 2021-01-03
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:48:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 14,806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24078490
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mymidsummersunshine/pseuds/mymidsummersunshine
Summary: Drabbles and oneshots from my cat AU, the same universe as I'll Give You My Heart (I Hope It'll Do)
Relationships: Anders Bjork/Matt Grzelcyk
Series: Cat AU [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1737166
Comments: 14
Kudos: 21





	1. Adoption

**Author's Note:**

> These have all been posted on Tumblr as well but I figured I'd put them all in one place here!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt comes home to find out Anders has adopted a kitten

It’s been a long day, and all Matt wants to do is go home, put some pajamas on, and curl up on the couch with a hot chocolate and a movie and maybe his boyfriend, if he wants. Anders is making that very difficult.

“I made you dinner, do you want some?” he says.

“Oh, thank you. Let me change first and then I’ll eat.”

“No!”

Matt, startled slightly by the loudness, flinches. Anders doubles back immediately.

“Sorry. I meant, uh. What do you want to change into? I’ll grab it for you.”

“I can’t do it myself?”

“No. I mean, you can, but I - don’t you want to get comfy on the couch first?”

“Not in my work clothes.” Matt starts to head to the bedroom, but Anders pulls him into a hug to stop him. He struggles for a bit, before giving up and sighing when Anders doesn’t let him go.

“Anders.”

“Mmm?”

“Why can I not go into our room? Be honest.”

Anders doesn’t say anything for a bit. “I have a surprise for you,” he says eventually.

“A surprise?” When he feels Anders nod, he continues, “what kind of a surprise?”

“A good one, I hope.”

“Anders…”

“Okay, sorry, I should have asked first. Let me just go get him.”

“… Him?”

Anders ignores him, letting go of him as he goes into the room. Matt wonders who it could be. Is it someone he knows?

“Come on, it’s okay,” he hears Anders say. Guess he’s shy. “There you go. Good boy.” Wait, what?

Soon enough, Anders emerges from the room, and he’s holding… a kitten.

Matt needs to sit down. He misses the couch and ends up on the floor, but he doesn’t even care. Anders carefully sits down next to him, moving the kitten into one arm and putting the other one around Matt. He rubs his hand up and down Matt’s arm to soothe him.

“When you said ‘him…’” Matt trails off, collecting his thoughts before trying again. “When you said ‘him,’ I thought you were hiding a person in there.”

Anders laughs softly. “Is there someone you would have preferred?”

“Dunno. Chris Evans, maybe?”

“Sorry, he was busy. But I hope this is just as good.” He sets the kitten down in Matt’s lap. Matt reaches down to pet him; he’s barely bigger than his hand. He smiles as he starts purring.

“Does he have a name?” he asks.

“Not yet. I wanted to name him together. Plus you’d never forgive me if I named him Aitch or something.”

Matt laughs at that. “That’s not true. It might not be my first choice, but if it makes you happy then it makes me happy.”

“So you’re saying we can name him Aitch?”

“I’m saying it’s an option.”

“Well, what’s your other option?”

Matt looks down at the kitten. Naming things has never been his specialty, even growing up he always chose his stuffed animals’ names carefully, sometimes taking weeks to come to a decision. It has to feel just right.

“Is Oreo too obvious?” he suggests. “Since he’s black and white.”

“Maybe a bit. Jake might also try to eat him if we name him Oreo.”

“True.” Matt stops petting him for a second, and he headbutts him to get him to continue. “What about Tiny? He’s pretty small, and also for Tiny Thompson.”

Anders laughs. “He’s going to grow, you know. Watch, he’s going to become the world’s fattest cat, and you named him Tiny.”

“ _We_ named him Tiny. And we’ll keep him on a good meal plan so that doesn’t happen.” Matt pauses. “You do have food for him, right?”

Anders nods to confirm. “Oh, yeah, I’ve got everything. Food, both wet and dry, litter box, toys, bed, you name it. I even found these cute ceramic bowls for food and water with little paw prints on them.”

Tiny hops off Matt’s lap and wanders around the living room, sniffing every piece of furniture curiously. “What made you decide to adopt a cat without me?” Matt asks.

“Well, you know the animal shelter is on my way home from school,” Anders starts slowly. “He was in the window, and he just looked so sad, so I had to go in. The person at the front desk said his previous owners had to bring him there since their newborn was allergic. Then he licked my hand, and, well, I couldn’t just leave him there.”

“Of course not.” There’s a beat of silence, then, “why try to hide him though?”

“I dunno, I realized on the way home I never texted you or anything, and I didn’t want you to be mad.”

“’S okay. I’m not mad, I just wasn’t expecting it, is all. But I’m glad he’s here.”

Anders smiles, then pulls him in for a hug as he presses a kiss to the top of his head. Matt turns to meet him. But before he can kiss him properly, they’re interrupted by Tiny suddenly running across their laps at full speed, and they both have to laugh.

“Actually though, I am going to go change now,” Matt says as he stands up. He offers a hand to Anders to help him up as well.

“I’ll heat up your dinner. Do you want to do a movie night? I hear they’re better with cat cuddles.”

Tiny has found a receipt on the floor and is doing a very good job of tearing it to shreds with his claws and teeth. “Maybe once he calms down,” Matt says. “But I’ll accept boyfriend cuddles as a substitute.”

Anders smiles. “I can make that happen.”


	2. Car Ride

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tiny goes on an unexpected adventure

Matt gets home after another long day, relaxing slightly when he sees Tiny trot towards him. He kneels down to pet him.

“Hey, buddy,” he says. “How was your day? Huh? Did you have a good day?”

“I did, actually,” he hears Anders say from down the hall. Matt looks up to see him leaning against the wall, and, great. He’s been watching him this whole time.

“I meant Tiny. But I’m glad to hear you had a good day, too. Better than mine.”

Anders walks down the short hallway as Matt stands up to hug him. “Oh, love,” he says, kissing the top of his head. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Matt sighs. “Just busy. I have to go to a client meeting out in Amherst tomorrow.”

“Oh, that sucks. I’m sorry.”

“Yeah. The good news is I get free lunch out of it.”

Anders laughs. “Free food is always good. Speaking of food, what do you want for dinner?”

—

The next morning, Matt wakes up early to try to beat the traffic. He’s going against traffic, technically, but he’d rather be early than late. Anders is just waking up when he has to leave, so he kisses his forehead, smiling at the way Anders looks up at him, hair going in every direction. He tries his very best not to lose it at how adorable he is this early in the morning. He’s moderately successful.

“I’ll be home late,” he whispers. “I love you.”

“Love you, too,” Anders mumbles back.

Matt goes down to the garage to his car before he realizes he forgot his coffee. He runs back up to grab it, then heads on his way.

The good thing about driving west in the morning is that the sun isn’t in his eyes, and there aren’t too many cars heading in his direction. Once he gets outside of the Boston city limits it’s pretty much smooth sailing. He makes it to Amherst in no time. Just as he pulls into the parking lot, he gets a call from Anders.

“Hey,” he says as he picks up. “What’s up?”

Anders doesn’t say anything. Matt checks to make sure they weren’t disconnected. “Honey?”

“I can’t find Tiny,” Anders says.

Matt starts to panic. “Oh, no.” He frantically tries to remember if he had seen him that morning. “I gave him breakfast, but I don’t know if I saw him after that. Did you check the garage? The backyard?”

“Yeah, he’s not there. I don’t know where he could be.”

“Have the neighbors seen him? Maybe he got out.”

“I don’t know. I’ll check with them. I’m calling in sick today to look for him.”

“Okay. Call me if you hear anything, yeah? Actually, text me, I’ll be in my meeting.”

“I will.”

Matt is about to say goodbye when he hears a soft meow. “Oh, is that him?”

“Is what him?”

“That meow. Did you find him?”

“There was no meow, love.”

Maybe Matt’s losing his mind. But then he hears it again. He feels himself fill up with dread as he turns around.

Tiny is sitting in the backseat, looking absolutely petrified.

“Anders,” Matt says slowly. “You’re never gonna believe this.”

“No way. How did you not notice?!”

“He was so quiet!”

“Matt, I was having a fucking heart attack! He was with you the whole time?”

“I don’t even know how he got in the car!” he protests, before remembering he had to go back to grab his coffee. He had left the door open since he was coming right back. “Shit, he must have snuck in when I went back upstairs.”

“Clearly!”

Tiny meows again, so Matt taps on the console to get him to jump up with him. He scratches his head a few times to try to calm him down. “What am I supposed to do with him? I can’t take him to my meeting.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure.”

Anders sighs. “I already called out. I’ll come out there and pick him up.”

“No, you don’t have to do that.”

“Well, where else are you going to put him?”

“Good point.” Matt checks his clock. “Shit, I don’t think you’re gonna make it in time. My meeting starts in half an hour.”

“Shit. I’m leaving now, but I’ll never make it there by then.” Matt hears the car door shut. “Can you, I dunno, ask your boss or something? Promise he’ll be a good boy?”

“I suppose. Just, try to get here as fast as you can? Safely.”

“Will do. Love you.” Anders hangs up.

Matt sighs, then looks down at Tiny. He looks back up at him, seeming to be slightly more relaxed.

“You wanna come to my meeting?” he asks, scratching his head again. Tiny purrs in response. “Let me ask Charlie first, okay?” He picks up the phone again and calls him.

“Charlie Coyle speaking.”

“Hey Charlie, it’s Matt. I, uh, I have a problem with today’s meeting.”

“Oh, are you lost? I can get you directions.”

“No, no, I’m here, I just - so is my cat.”

“What?”

“He snuck in the car before I left. I didn’t know he was there until I got all the way out here. Anders is coming to get him but I don’t know what to do with him in the meantime.”

Charlie is quiet for a bit, before he bursts out laughing. “Oh, man,” he says. “You’re gonna be the highlight of the meeting for sure. And I thought it was gonna be that free lunch.”

“So he can come?”

“Of course. You can’t just leave him in the car.”

“Thank you.” Matt had honestly been expecting that to take more convincing. “Anders made me promise he’ll be a good boy.”

“I believe you. See you in a few.” He hangs up.

“Good news, buddy, you’re coming with me.”


	3. Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anders loves his family a whole lot. That's it, that's the drabble

“Honey, I’m home,” Anders calls as he shuts the door. He had to stay late at work for an event, and for once he got home after Matt. Or so he thinks; Matt isn’t answering.

Anders takes his shoes off, hoping that Matt’s boss didn’t make him stay too late. There are times when he does have to work overtime, probably more than he wants to, but he always texts him to let him know. Anders double checks his phone to confirm he didn’t get anything from him while he was at the event. He didn’t.

He makes his way down the hallway and into the kitchen and fills up Tiny’s food bowl, and, wait. He realizes he hasn’t seen Tiny, either. He heads into the living room, and the sight before him brings a smile to his face.

Matt has the game on TV, a west coast game so it had started late, but he’s fallen asleep on the couch. Tiny is asleep as well, curled up on his chest. Anders feels the love filling up in his own heart as he pulls out his phone and takes a picture. He was just thinking he needed a new picture for his desk at work. This will definitely do the trick.

He knows Matt probably needs the rest if he’s falling asleep on the couch, but he also knows he’d be much more comfortable in their bed, so he decides to wake him up. He kneels down beside the couch and gently runs his fingers through his hair. Matt slowly opens his eyes and looks up at him, then closes them again and smiles softly.

“Sorry,” he mumbles. “I wanted to wait up for you.”

“No need to be sorry, love. Do you want to go to bed?”

“Mmm.”

Matt makes no attempt to move, and Anders is convinced he’s fallen asleep again until he asks, “are we winning?”

“Yeah, we’re up 2-1. Not sure who scored, though, I just got home.”

“Oh,” he yawns.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go to bed?”

“I can’t move. I have a cat.”

“He can come, too.”

“… Okay.”

Matt slowly sits up, waking up Tiny in the process, who jumps down on the floor and wanders into the kitchen. Anders turns off the TV and follows Matt into the bedroom, then changes into his pajamas while Matt brushes his teeth. He turns the game on silent on the bedroom TV, trading places with Matt to brush his own teeth before climbing back into bed with him.

“Can I watch for a bit, or is the light too bright?” he asks.

“No, you can watch,” Matt says. “I don’t mind.”

“Okay, thanks. Goodnight, love.”

“Night. Love you.” He’s asleep again within minutes.

About halfway through the second period, Tiny makes his way back into the bedroom. He’s headed towards his own bed, but Anders calls him up with him and Matt, and he happily obliges. Anders scratches his chin.

“You’re a good boy,” he whispers. Tiny walks in a few circles around himself before curling up between them and going back to sleep.

Anders turns the game off after the second and shuts off the light. Surrounded by the warmth and love of his _family_ , this wonderful family the three of them have become, it doesn’t take long for him to fall asleep as well.


	4. Mouse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tiny catches a mouse. Matt and Anders are not thrilled, to say the least

Matt wakes up feeling groggy. He hadn’t slept well, and the grey skies threatening rain aren’t helping either. It’s a good thing he doesn’t have to work today, because he’s not sure how productive he would be.

He’s not quite sure he wants to get out of bed yet, so he stays another minute or so. He can hear Anders talking to Tiny in the living room and smiles to himself.

“Hey, there you are,” he hears him say. “Who’s a good boy, huh? Are you a good boy? Wait, whatcha got?”

Matt hears Anders scream, and it’s enough to wake him up completely in a matter of seconds. He bolts out of bed and opens the door. Anders looks over at him, conveying an expression somewhere between disgusted and horrified.

“What’s wrong?” Matt asks. Anders just points towards the floor, where a dead mouse sits at his feet. At least, Matt thinks it’s dead. He _hopes_ it’s dead. Tiny licks his paw, then looks up at Matt proudly, as if to show off his work.

Matt screams too.

“Oh my god, is it dead?!”

Anders gives him a look. “No, love, it’s taking a nap. Yes, it’s fucking dead!”

“Where did it even come from?”

“I don’t know!” Anders says, carefully backing up towards the bedroom. “I didn’t know we had a mouse problem.”

“I don’t want to think about that,” Matt says, pulling Anders into a hug once he backs up far enough. “I guess, I mean, at least we know he can catch them.”

Tiny tilts his head to the side.

“How do we get rid of it?” Matt asks. “Do we just, bring it outside?”

“Yeah, you can just put it in the bushes out back, probably,” Anders says.

“Okay, that sounds good - wait, _I_ can put it in the bushes?”

Anders nods. “Yeah, you can bring it outside.”

“No, _you_ can bring it outside. I’m not touching it!”

“Well, I don’t want to touch it, either!”

Matt sighs. At this rate, it’s just going to stay on their floor forever, and he doesn’t want that, either. “Do we call Jake and Charlie?”

“Jake, maybe. Definitely not Charlie, though. Remember the garden snake?”

Matt laughs as he recalls the memory of their vacation last summer, and Charlie sprinting from the outdoor pool all the way back to the hotel room without his shoes when he saw a snake on the grassy area right outside the fence. “Okay, yeah, not Charlie. I’ll text Jake, though, he’ll probably think it’s cool. He’s weird like that.”

He lets go of Anders and heads back into the bedroom to grab his phone, and send the text.

_Tiny caught a mouse, can you get it out of our living room?_

_Aww, for real? Is it cute??_

_You are not asking the right person_

_Ok, fine, fine, I’ll be over in 15_

_Thank you, I owe you one_

Matt sets his phone back down on the nightstand and goes back to the doorway. Anders hasn’t moved; he’s still staring at it. Matt wraps an arm around his shoulder and guides him back into the bedroom.

“Come on, let’s look at something else,” he says. Anders breathes a sigh of relief and whispers a quiet “thank you.” He leans into Matt’s side when they sit back in the bed. Matt turns on the TV, flicking through the channels until he finds a lighthearted movie they’ve both seen before. He sets the remote down and rubs his hand over Anders’ shoulder.

“Thank you, love,” Anders says again. “I just… I know it’s all part of nature, or whatever, I just wasn’t expecting him to bring it into our living room.”

“No, I get it,” Matt assures him. “I wasn’t, either. And at least it wasn’t alive, because it would be a lot harder for Jake to catch it if it kept running away.”

“Yeah, that’s true.” Matt gets the sense Anders doesn’t want to talk about it anymore, so he changes the subject.

“Hey, how’d your work thing go yesterday?”

Anders perks up at that, and starts telling him about the event, an art night for the students and their families. He’s not a teacher, he works in the administration part of the school, but the kids all know him and love him, and he always goes to as many sporting events and school plays and such as he can to support them. Matt’s been to a few events with him, it’s easy to see why they all love him. Why _he_ loves him. The way he connects with them all individually, asking them questions about their interests and pointing out specific things he likes about their work, it’s enough to make Matt fall in love with him all over again.

Anders is just telling him about Trent’s still life that he’s been working all semester on and was super proud of when Matt’s phone vibrates. It’s a text from Jake saying he’s outside. Matt sighs.

“I guess we better let him in.”

“I suppose,” Anders grins.

Matt smiles softly as he stands up. He takes the long way around the living room to avoid the mouse, then heads down the hallway to the door. Jake is standing there as promised, a huge smile on his face.

“Pest control, heard you have a mouse problem,” he greets him.

“It better be just the one, not a whole problem, or I’m gonna lose it,” Matt says as he lets him in. He leads him back down the hallway and into the living room. Anders waves from the bedroom doorway.

“Hi Jake, nice to see you, now please get rid of that thing.”

Jake laughs. “Sure. Do you have, like, a spare towel I can use or something?”

Matt looks away as Jake scoops it up, then heads past him outside. He returns a few minutes later, throwing the towel into the washer and washing his hands. He stops to pet Tiny, who seems sad that his prize was thrown away so easily.

“Did you catch that all by yourself? You’re a fierce little dude,” he says as he scratches his chin. Tiny purrs at the praise. Jake stands up after a few minutes.

“Well, I think my work here is done,” he claps. “Let me know if he catches any more.”

“Oh, we will, don’t worry,” Anders promises. “Thanks for coming over.”

“Really, it’s not a problem. Bye!” He heads back down the hallway and Matt hears the door shut. He looks back over at Anders.

“So now that that’s out of the way, would you like some breakfast?”


	5. Bath Tub

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anders takes a bath, and Tiny accidentally joins him

It’s another cold, rainy spring day, and Matt and Anders can’t think of anything to do. There’s not really anywhere they can go because of quarantine, and they can only watch so many movies on Netflix or re-runs of hockey games. Matt is reading a book he found on Anders’ bookshelf that he surprisingly hasn’t read before, with Anders sitting next to him on the couch playing a game on his phone, and Tiny asleep on his lap, when Anders stretches and stands up.

“I’m going to take a bath,” he says. Matt nods.

“Okay.” He turns back to his book as Anders disappears into the bathroom. He hears the water start running, and Anders puts on one of his playlists, humming along to the song. After a while the water turns off, leaving only the muffled sound from the music through the partially opened door.

He’s not sure how long it is before Tiny wakes up and stretches, jumping off of Matt’s lap and wandering away. Matt doesn’t think anything of it until he hears Anders talking to him.

“No, Tiny, that’s a bad idea, buddy” he laughs. “Neither one of us is going to be happy if you -”

_Splash._

“Ow, fuck. See? I told you!”

Matt hears scratching sounds, then a small thud before Tiny sprints out of the bathroom, leaving a trail of water behind him. He disappears into the kitchen. Matt sets his book down.

“You okay?” he calls out.

“Yeah,” Anders calls back, “he fell in the tub. I told him it was a bad idea to walk along the edge!”

“Maybe next time he’ll listen. Did he scratch you at all?”

“A bit. I’m fine, though, I promise.”

Matt’s not convinced. He wants to see it for himself. “Can I come look?”

“No, no, really, I’m fine.” He hears the medicine cabinet door open and shut, presumably to get some bandaids. “I was going to get out soon anyway. Let me get dressed, I’ll be right out.”

“Okay, if you’re sure. Can you toss me a towel though? I’m going to try to dry him off.”

“Sure.” Anders sticks his head out from around the door and throws a towel at him. He completely misses and it ends up in a heap on the floor. Matt snorts as he picks it up, and Anders pouts. 

“Hey, don’t laugh, that’s my bad shoulder,” he complains.

“Shit, sorry, I forgot.”

Anders goes back into the bathroom, and Matt heads into the kitchen to try to find Tiny. He finds him sitting in front of the fridge, trying to lick off the excess water. Matt smiles.

“Come here, buddy,” he says as he sits down. “Let’s dry you off, yeah?” He unfolds the towel and reaches over to grab him. Tiny doesn’t usually like being picked up; he loves to be petted, and he’ll sit on Matt’s or Anders’ laps, or occasionally one of their friends, but he likes to have control of the situation. So Matt is surprised when he’s able to pick him up and set him down in his lap with minimal protesting. He whispers to him to try to keep him calm as he rubs the towel back and forth, making sure to pet him with one hand at the same time. When he’s finished, Tiny is still pretty damp, but he’s not dripping water anymore, so he lets him go.

“There you go,” he says. Tiny sits down on the floor and looks back up at him, so he pets his head. Matt hears the door open, then looks up to see Anders watching them. He’s wearing sweatpants and one of Matt’s T-shirts, with his towel over his shoulders, hair still dripping slightly. 

“Did you get him?” he asks.

Matt nods as he stands up. “Yeah, he’s still a little damp but he’s not soaking wet anymore. I suppose we could blow dry him.”

Anders laughs. “I don’t think he would forgive us for that.”

“Yeah, probably not. Are _you_ okay, though? Where did he scratch you?”

“Matt, love, I promise, I’m fine. He just got me a little bit on my side. It wasn’t even bleeding that badly, it only took one bandaid. I got him out pretty quick.” He lifts up the corner of his shirt to show him. There’s a fine, pink, puffy line coming out from either side of the bandaid, but all in all it doesn’t look too bad. Matt breathes a sigh of relief.

“That definitely could be worse.” He turns back to Tiny. “No more baths for you, mister.”

Tiny squints his eyes, then heads back into the living room.

“Sorry for making fun of your shoulder,” Matt apologizes again. “And I’m sorry your bath got interrupted.”

“‘S alright,” Anders shrugs. “You’re bound to get scratched every now and then, such is the life of a cat dad. Better question, do you want to attempt a board game? I bet between the two of us he wouldn’t knock any of the pieces over.”

“Sure, but he’s on my team. And we’re gonna win.”

“In your dreams.”


	6. Long Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt has to stay at work overnight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one came from a prompt sent to me on Tumblr! “A cup of coffee would be nice” (quote) and finally getting home after a long day (situation)

Matt clicks Save on the last document, then clicks it five or six more times just to be sure. He attaches it to the email to Charlie, then after quadruple checking the email for spelling errors, clicks Send. He sighs with relief.

“Done!” he exclaims, clapping his hands together.

“Done,” Charlie confirms from his office once the email goes through. He leans back in his chair. “Thank you so much for staying. You can take tomorrow, or, today I guess, take today off. Actually, take tomorrow off, too. You’ve been here for almost 24 hours, that’s three days in work time.”

Matt is about to say no, that can’t be right, when he looks out the window and realizes it’s light out.

“I’ve been here all night?!”

“Yeah, sorry for that, but you saved my ass for the auditors meeting, so thank you. Now go home.”

The tiredness suddenly catches up with Matt as he lowers his head down on his desk. Their entire network had crashed yesterday, meaning all of their documents were lost, with no additional backup. Charlie has a yearly meeting with the auditors tomorrow - today - and enlisted Matt’s and a few other of his coworkers’ help to try to recover everything, and recreate what couldn’t be recovered. Matt told Anders he wasn’t coming home any time soon, and told him to just go to bed around 11 when he still wasn’t even close to being done, but he still didn’t think he’d be here _all_ night. The rest of his coworkers had left around 3, once it was clear Matt and Charlie could finish everything else up themselves.

He feels a hand on his back and lifts his head up. Charlie is looking at him concernedly.

“You okay, man? Are you alright to drive?”

Matt sighs. “I don’t know, honestly. Probably not.”

“Do you have someone who can come get you? I don’t want you to drive if you don’t feel safe, but I don’t want you to have to sleep on the floor in my office, either. You’d probably be much more comfortable at home.”

“Yeah, let me call Anders.” He picks up his phone, it’s right about the time Anders would be waking up. He dials the number and waits.

Anders picks up on the first ring.

“Matt? Love? Are you okay?” he asks in lieu of hello.

“I’m fine. I’m finally done at work. Did you wait up for me? I told you not to.”

“Did you just finish?! And no, I dozed off around midnight, but I wasn’t really fully asleep.”

“Oh. Sorry.” He suddenly wants nothing more than to be home, in his bed, in Anders’ arms and with Tiny next to him, and starts to tear up a bit with how exhausted he is. “Can you come get me? I don’t think I should drive home.”

“Of course, I’m on my way. I’ll be there soon. I love you.”

“I love you, too.” He hangs up, then puts his head back down in his arms on the desk and waits. He doesn’t realize he’s fallen asleep until he wakes up to someone gently shaking his shoulder.

“Hey, love, I’m here,” Anders says.

Matt sits up and yawns. “Anders? How’d you get in? The door is locked.”

“Charlie let me in, you weren’t answering my texts. Let’s get you home, yeah?”

Matt stands up, stretches, then waves goodbye to Charlie as he follows Anders back down to the parking lot. He settles into the passenger seat of Anders’ car.

“We’ll come back for your car tonight,” Anders says as he starts the engine.

“Okay.”

Matt zones out the entire ride home, not asleep but not fully aware, either. He barely registers as Anders pulls into the garage. He somehow makes it up the stairs and into their kitchen, and sits down at the table.

“I do have to leave for work in a few minutes, but do you need anything?” Anders asks.

“A cup of coffee would be nice.”

“No, love, I don’t think you should,” Anders says as he comes over to the table and hugs him from behind. “You need sleep, not caffeine.”

“Mmm, fine,” Matt mumbles, leaning back into Anders’ chest. “Then I just need a kiss goodnight. Or good morning, whatever it is.”

“That, I can help with.” He leans down and kisses Matt’s temple first, then his lips, before standing up to leave for work. “Good night, morning, love, I’ll see you when I get home. Tiny can keep you company.”

Tiny perks up at the sound of his name, jumping into the chair next to Matt and demanding attention. Matt smiles and pets him.

“Get some rest,” Anders says from the doorway. “See you tonight. I love you.”

“I love you, too. Thank you for getting me.”

“Of course.”

Anders softly shuts the door behind him. Matt stands up and heads into the bedroom, changing into pajamas before climbing into bed. Tiny follows him, curling up on Anders’ side of the bed, and Matt is asleep within seconds of his head hitting the pillow.


	7. Working From Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quarantine forces Matt to start working from home, and Tiny tries to help

Matt’s alarm goes off, and he makes sure to shut it off quickly so it doesn’t wake up Anders. He quietly slips out of bed and into the kitchen to get his coffee started and to feed Tiny, then heads into the bathroom to take a shower. It’s been a few days, he’ll be honest, but he has a video call today for work, so he figures he should put some effort into his appearance. At least, style his hair somewhat and maybe change from pajamas into something a bit more presentable. Even a plain shirt and jeans would probably do.

Once he’s finished showering and dressed, he goes back into the kitchen to find something for breakfast, and is happy to see Anders had saved the last bagel for him. He puts it into the toaster, fills up a mug with coffee and a glass with water, then sits down at the table to start up his computer. It’s definitely been an adjustment working from home, but thankfully he can do everything he needs to remotely. He’s also thankful they’re still allowing him to work overtime. After Anders had been furloughed, his position isn’t doable remotely, Matt had to ask if he still could, and luckily Charlie had given him the okay. Sure, working the extra hours is exhausting, and he would much rather keep his work life and home life separate in general, but in the evenings, working on the couch at the folding TV dinner table, and with Anders’ head in his lap while he watches a movie, he finds it’s not so bad at all.

The toaster dings, and Matt steps away from his emails for a minute to put cream cheese on the bagel. In that time, Tiny had jumped into his chair, and now doesn’t want to leave.

“Tiny. Buddy. Come on,” Matt sighs. He tries to scoop him up, but Tiny digs his claws into the cushion and holds on. He eventually just tips the chair until he falls off ungracefully. “I know you don’t have to work, but I still do,” he says. Tiny glares at him, then turns and walks into the bedroom. 

About an hour later, fifteen minutes before Matt’s video call, Anders wakes up. He comes out of the bedroom, still in pajamas, and holding Tiny over his shoulder.

“Morning,” he says. “Tiny says you were mean to him.”

“I wasn’t mean! He stole my chair, and then he wouldn’t leave!” Matt argues, before realizing. “Wait, how did you know that?”

“He’s usually out here with you when I wake up, so I figured he was mad. Guess I was right,” he smirks. He has a good point; Tiny did usually spend the morning asleep in Matt’s lap, or on his keyboard, which is much less convenient.

“Okay, maybe it was a little mean,” he admits. “Do you think he’ll forgive me?”

“You’d have to ask him.” Anders holds him out slightly for Matt to stand up and pet him.

“Do you forgive me, buddy?” Matt pets his head, and Tiny leans into his hand. “I think he does,” he tells Anders.

Anders smiles. “Good.” He kisses Matt’s lips, then sets Tiny down so he can make himself breakfast. 

“Hey, do you think you can keep him out here? I was going to take the video call at the desk in the bedroom,” Matt says. “That way I can shut the door.”

“If you shut the door, you don’t need me to keep him out here,” Anders laughs. “But sure, I’ll keep him occupied.”

“Thanks. I’ll only be an hour or so, hopefully it won’t run too much over.”

“Sounds good. Have fun!” Anders turns back to the cabinet in search of non-boring cereal. Matt unplugs his computer, then goes to set up at their desk. 

The meeting starts out normal enough. Matt’s glad to see he’s not the only one who couldn’t be bothered to put on a full suit. Several of his coworkers are in T-shirts and pajama pants, and honestly, he can’t blame them. He almost feels overdressed in his jeans.

Right as he’s talking, he hears a loud thud in the background as something crashes into the bedroom door, and another loud bang as the door opens and slams into the wall. He cringes, realizing he must not have shut it all the way, and hopes the damage to the wall isn’t too bad. He turns around to see Tiny staring back at him, pupils wide, in full attack mode, ready to pounce. Anders comes rushing in behind him.

“Sorry,” he stage-whispers to Matt. “Come on, buddy, let’s go back out here!” 

“What are you doing out there?!” 

Anders holds up the laser pointer. “He was chasing the dot,” he says. “I made it go under the door. Probably should have thought that through. Did we interrupt anything important?”

Matt suddenly remembers that he was the one who had been talking, and he’s not on mute. He turns back to his computer only to see all of his coworkers looking back at him amusedly. He feels his face flush with embarrassment.

“Sorry about that,” he says. 

“Matt,” Charlie starts, looking like he’s trying to hold it together, but will probably lose it laughing any minute. “You know Tiny is invited to any of our meetings, especially after he did such a good job at the one in Amherst.”

Matt would rather not remember that. Before Anders had come to pick him up, he had spent the whole meeting wandering around the room, sniffing people’s feet and walking in front of the projector to block the screen, before settling in Matt’s lap for a nap. All in all it was not a very productive meeting, but it did earn Tiny the Employee of the Month award. His plaque is still on the wall back at the office.

(“I didn’t realize we had an employee of the month,” Matt had said when he saw the plaque.

Charlie laughed. “We didn’t. But if anyone deserves it, it’s him.”)

Anders finally herds Tiny out of the room, then apologizes again as he leaves and shuts the door behind him. He pushes at it to make sure it’s shut all the way this time, then Matt hears his footsteps walking away.

Matt sighs. “Alright, where was I?”


	8. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt comes home from a business trip

It’s just before midnight when Matt’s plane touches down back in Boston. He’s been away for the week on a business trip with Charlie and a couple of their other coworkers, and for as much fun as he did have, he really just wants to be back home. He makes his way through the airport to baggage claim, picks up his suitcase, which was one of the first ones off somehow, bids goodbye to everyone, and heads outside to book a Lyft ride. When they get there, he puts his suitcase in the trunk, then sits down in the passenger seat. The driver signals to get back into the through lane.

“Coming home or visiting?” they ask to make small talk.

“Home,” Matt answers, but the simple word fills him up with an emotion he wasn’t prepared for. Sure, he’s back in the city now, but he’s not _home_ home yet. At his house, in his own bed, not a hotel bed, with Anders and Tiny. That’s home.

“Well, welcome back, then,” the driver says, snapping Matt back out of his thoughts.

“Thanks.”

With the empty midnight traffic, it doesn’t take too long to get to his house. Matt can see a light on in the living room. Anders must have waited up for him, and he can’t resist a little smile. The driver pulls into the driveway, then stops to help Matt get his suitcase out of the trunk. Matt thanks them, and then they’re on their way.

Matt fishes his key out of his jacket pocket, then heads inside and drags his suitcase in behind him. He stops in the hallway to take off his shoes, but he only gets one off before he’s nearly tackled over in a hug. He catches his balance, then wraps his own arms around Anders, turning his head into the crook of his neck and breathing in his scent. He does have to admit, however nice the accommodations were, it was lonely in the hotel room.

“I missed you,” Anders whispers as he rocks them back and forth, squeezing him tighter and kissing the top of his head.

“I missed you, too.”

Just as Matt is thinking he could stay like this forever, Anders notices something and pulls away first. “Hey, Tiny, no, don’t eat that.” Matt looks over to see Tiny chewing on the end of his shoelace, the shoe he actually managed to take off. Anders picks up Tiny, who just squirms, while Matt quickly takes off his other shoe and puts the pair away. He turns back to Anders, who finally sets Tiny down, and he immediately sprints away into the living room. Guess Matt can say hello to him later. Anders opens his arms again, and Matt wastes no time getting back into them. He’s got a week’s worth of hugs to make up for.

“How was he?” he asks Anders.

Anders smiles. “He was good, I think he was a little sad, though. He slept on your side of the bed most nights.”

“Aww.” Matt pulls his head away from his shoulder so he can look up at him. “And how were you?”

“I mean, I missed you a whole lot. I know we FaceTimed but it’s not the same, you know?”

“No, it’s definitely not.” He reaches up to touch Anders’ cheek, and Anders leans into it.

“It was lonely without you. I’m just... I’m so glad you’re home now.”

“Me, too. I love you,” Matt says, and the smile that it brings to Anders’ face makes him feel that same unexpected wave of emotion he felt in the Lyft.

“I love you, too,” Anders whispers back, before leaning in for a long kiss. They have a week’s worth of these to make up for, too.

When they do have to break apart in order to breathe, Anders presses their foreheads together. “Do you want to unpack tonight?” he asks, gesturing to his suitcase. Matt shakes his head.

“No, I’ll deal with it tomorrow. I just really want to go to bed.”

“Okay.” Anders threads their fingers together and walks them into the bedroom, before he has to let go so Matt can change into pajamas and brush his teeth. He uses a spare toothbrush from his last trip to the dentist so he doesn’t have to get his toiletry bag out, then crawls into bed, where Anders and Tiny are both waiting for him. Thankfully Tiny seems okay with giving Matt his side of the bed back, instead curling up by Anders’ feet. Matt scratches his head a few times before he lies down.

“Goodnight,” he whispers to Anders. “I love you.”

“Goodnight, love. Welcome home.”

Hearing it from Anders makes it easy for Matt to settle right in and drift off to sleep. He’s right, he thinks with a smile. This is _home_.


	9. Birthday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt wants to give Anders the best birthday ever. Tiny has other plans.

When Matt’s alarm goes off, the sun is just starting to come up over the horizon. He quickly shuts it off and slips out of bed, carefully shutting the door behind him before he heads into the kitchen to start the coffee and Anders’ birthday breakfast: cinnamon rolls. He preheats the oven before pulling the dough out, thanking past Matt for making it in advance to let it rise, then gets them in the oven and sets the timer. He feeds Tiny, who has been meowing at him this whole time, then starts cutting up some fruit to have with it. When the timer goes off, he gets them out of the oven and ices and cuts them, putting one on a plate for each of them with some of the fruit. He fills their two matching mugs with their names from their trip to Disneyland a few years back with coffee, then puts both mugs and plates onto the tray before going back to their room. He balances the tray on his hip so he can knock on the door and open it.

“Honey? You awake?” he asks as he enters the room. Anders rolls over and looks up at him sleepily, smiling when he sees the tray.

“Breakfast in bed?” he says as he sits up.

“Of course,” Matt says. He sets the tray down on the bed, then climbs back in next to him. “A special breakfast for a special day. Happy birthday, honey.” He presses a kiss to Anders’ cheek. 

“Thank you, love. These look and smell incredible.” He picks up his fork and takes a bite. “Oh, man, _and_ they taste incredible! I love you so much, thank you for this.”

“Do you love me, or just my cinnamon rolls?” Matt jokes, taking a bite of his own. He’s happy to find out that they are actually delicious, and that Anders isn’t just saying that to be nice.

Anders laughs. “Can I say both?”

They finish eating in relative silence, with the TV on the news in the background, but then Tiny tries to drink Anders’ coffee when he’s not paying attention. Matt, knowing it’s poisonous for him, yells a little too loud to get him to stop and accidentally scares him off the bed.

“Aw, buddy, I’m sorry,” he says as he stands up. Tiny cowers away from him at first, but he extends his hand to let him sniff it, and he does so cautiously. He headbutts his hand and Matt gives him a few scratches. “It’s okay, you’re okay. I didn’t mean to scare you.” He picks him up and puts him back on the bed with Anders so he can wash the dishes.

“Aww, was Matt being mean to you?” Anders coos, petting him with both hands on his head and down his back. Tiny curls up on his lap and starts purring. Anders looks up at Matt in the doorway. “Guess he likes me better.”

“Hey, no fair!” Matt complains. “I wasn’t trying to be mean, I just didn’t want him to get sick!”

Anders just goes back to petting Tiny, so Matt goes to wash the dishes. They both get dressed and sit down on the couch. Matt picks up one of Tiny’s toys to play with him, to try and let out some of his energy.

“What time are you meeting your brother?” Matt asks, shaking the toy for Tiny. He had flown in from Wisconsin for the weekend, so he and Anders were planning on getting lunch together, and maybe spending the afternoon in the city.

“Around noon, I think, I’ll double check with him. I’ll probably leave around 11:30. You’re still more than welcome to come, too.”

“No, you guys go. I have to make dinner anyway.”

Anders raises his eyebrows. “Breakfast and dinner? Wow, I feel like I’m getting the royal treatment.”

“Well, yeah,” Matt shrugs, “it’s your birthday. You want a massage while I’m at it?”

He laughs. “Maybe later.”

Anders leaves shortly afterwards for lunch, with a kiss goodbye and a “see you for dinner!” as he heads out the door. Matt looks at Tiny, who tilts his head to the side curiously.

“Well,” he says, “it’s just you and me for the afternoon. You want to help me get everything ready?”

Tiny walks back into the living room and jumps into his tower for a nap. Oh, well. Matt can do it on his own, he supposes.

He starts with setting the table, since the actual meal won’t take that long to prepare, and he wants it to be hot when Anders gets home. He puts on a fancy looking tablecloth he had found in their linen closet, he’s not sure where they got it, but it sure did come in handy. He sets up the plates, glasses, and silverware, and attempts to fold the napkins like origami swans, but after too many failed attempts he gives up and just folds them into neat triangles instead. In the center of the table he puts two long candles and a vase. There’s a flower shop just down the road where he can get a nice bouquet for the centerpiece. All in all, he thinks he did a pretty good job making it look like an expensive restaurant, which was his goal. He hopes the meal comes out just as good to match.

Once he’s back from the flower shop, he fills the vase with water and puts them in. They definitely add a nice pop of color; yellows and pinks and oranges, almost like a sunset.

Cooking the swordfish is a lot less stressful than Matt was expecting, despite it being the first time he’s made it on his own. He doesn’t burn it, and the house doesn’t even smell like fish, so he counts it as a success. Once it’s in the oven he hops in to take a quick shower and change into his suit. This is a nice dinner, so he figures it calls for a nice outfit. 

Anders texts him right as he’s plating the fish and veggies he made to go with it to say that he’s on his way back, so Matt finishes up quickly, lights the candles, and heads to the living room to wait for him. It’s only a few minutes later when he sees him pull into the driveway. Matt goes over to open the door for him. Anders raises his eyebrows when he sees him.

“What’s the suit for?” he asks, smiling.

“You’ll see, it’s a surprise,” Matt says. “Close your eyes.”

Anders does, and Matt puts his hands over them to make sure he can’t peek. He walks them into the kitchen, so excited to tell Anders to open them, but stops when he sees the sight in front of him.

“Oh, no.”

“What’s wrong?” Anders asks. Matt sighs, then lowers his hands. Anders opens his eyes to take a look too.

In the less than five minutes Matt had been gone, Tiny had jumped up on the table, and is now helping himself to the fish.

“Honey, I’m so sorry,” Matt says. 

“Hey, it’s okay!” Anders assures him. “I still got my cinnamon rolls, right?”

“Yeah, but... but you were supposed to have this, too. We don’t get swordfish too often and I know you really love it.”

Anders wraps an arm around his shoulder. “Matt, love, I promise, it’s okay. You didn’t have to do any of this at all, but you put in the effort anyway, so thank you so much. I love you.”

“Even if Tiny ate your fish?” At the sound of his name, Tiny looks up at them briefly, then goes back to his dinner. His second dinner, to be specific - Matt had already fed him his cat food earlier in hopes of preventing this.

“Even if Tiny ate my fish. But, we should probably stop him. I’m not sure how big cat portions should be, but I doubt it’s as big as human portions.” He lets go of Matt to take the plate away, and Tiny looks up at him, eyes widened as if to say _wait, where are you going with that?!_ Matt takes the other plate, since it looks like he got into that one too, and they both scrape them into the trash. Anders insists on washing the dishes so Matt doesn’t risk getting his suit dirty, then they both sit back at the table. Tiny jumps down and wanders off, sulking.

“So,” Matt starts, and Anders smiles at him. “I wasn’t counting on that, so I don’t really have a backup plan for dinner. Is there anything in particular you want?”

“I’m good with whatever,” Anders says. “It doesn’t have to be anything fancy.”

“You pick, it’s your birthday.”

“I’m kind of in the mood for pizza, is that weird?”

“Hey, if you want a pizza, then let’s get a pizza.” Matt places the order while Anders changes into pajamas for a cozy night in, then does the same and joins him on the couch to wait. Anders lies his head down in Matt’s lap, and Matt starts playing with his hair. Anders closes his eyes and smiles.

“Can I take you up on that massage after dinner?” he asks.

“Of course.”

When the delivery person gets there, Anders stands up to get it, and Tiny jumps up on the couch and sits down in Matt’s lap. Anders looks at him with fake offense when he gets back.

“Hey, you took my spot!” he says, one hand on his hip.

“Guess he just likes me better,” Matt smirks, echoing his words from this morning. Anders’ jaw drops.

“Oh, I’ll get you for that one, Gryz.”

“I’d like to see you try, Dersy.”

Anders rolls his eyes at the nickname, then goes into the kitchen with the pizza box. He does still come back with a plate for each of them so Matt doesn’t have to get up and disturb Tiny.

“Sorry again about the fish,” Matt apologizes. 

“Hey, it’s okay,” Anders says. “Like I said, it doesn’t need to be anything fancy. It could be a five star restaurant, or pizza in pajamas, but I get to spend my birthday with you, and that’s the best present.”

“I’d kiss you right now if I didn’t have pizza breath.”

Anders laughs. “Maybe after we brush our teeth, then.”

They finish the pizza relatively quickly, then Matt puts the leftovers away and gets out the cake, which thankfully had been in the fridge and is still in one piece. He sings, Anders blows out the candles, they eat the cake, and then they go right back to the couch and put on a movie.

“Did you want your massage?” Matt asks.

“Mm, not yet. I want to watch the movie.”

“Mkay.”

They sit quietly for a few more minutes, before Anders speaks up again.

“Thank you for the best birthday ever,” he says, snuggling further into Matt’s shoulder.

“Was it really the best?” Matt asks. “So much went wrong.”

“It was the best,” Anders repeats. He doesn’t elaborate, so Matt just squeezes him tighter.

“Then I’m glad, you deserve it. I love you.”

“I love you, too.”


	10. Sick

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tiny gets sick, and Matt and Anders have to take him to the vet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW for minor illnesses and shots, but Tiny is fine I promise!
> 
> Also disclaimer I'm not a vet, this is just what I remember from when my own cat had an upper respiratory infection, so it may or may not be accurate

Matt wakes up just before sunrise one Saturday morning, but he can’t get back to sleep, so he just gets out of bed and starts his day. He makes his coffee and breakfast, then settles in on the couch, turning on some home improvement show on TV that he can watch without paying too much attention to. Tiny jumps up on the couch and curls up opposite him, and Matt leans over to kiss the top of his head.

The bedroom door opens and Anders comes out, still looking sleepy. “Morning,” he says.

“Morning.”

Anders comes over and leans down for a kiss, but he makes a face when he pulls away.

“What?” Matt asks. He doesn’t know whether or not to be offended.

“Nothing, you just got cat fur in my mouth,” Anders laughs. “I wasn’t expecting it, is all.”

Matt laughs with him. “Oh, sorry. I did kiss him, too, right before you came out.” He frowns, looking back down at him. “Have you noticed he’s been acting weird lately?”

“Weird how?”

“Like, he hasn’t been as active, he doesn’t want to play as much. He’s definitely been sleeping a lot more, too.”

“Hmm, no, I hadn’t. You okay, buddy?” Anders reaches down to pet Tiny’s head. Tiny wakes up, glares at him, and goes right back to sleep. “Now that you mention it, though…”

“Do you think he’s alright?” Matt’s really starting to worry now.

“I mean, he’s been eating, right? Drinking water?” Matt nods. “Then he’ll probably be fine. But if you think we should take him to the vet, we can call them today.”

Matt sighs. “No, no, you’re probably right. But if he gets any worse then I think we should.”

“Alright. Let’s keep an eye on him.” Anders disappears into the kitchen to make his breakfast, and Matt looks back down at Tiny.

“Are you alright, buddy?” he asks, gently scratching behind his ears. Tiny just sighs, too tired to protest. “You’re a sleepy kitty, aren’t you?” Matt yawns. “Guess you’re not the only one.”

When Anders comes back into the living room, bagel in hand, he finds Matt and Tiny both asleep on the couch, Matt’s head just in front of Tiny, not quite using him as a pillow but almost. He just shakes his head and sits down in the arm chair.

—

A few days later, Tiny still hasn’t gotten much energy back, and now he’s been sniffling and sneezing, too.

“I’m worried about him,” Matt says as he sneezes again. “Like, I guess it could just be allergies, but…”

“No, I get you. I am, too,” Anders says. “Do you think we should call the vet?”

“I think we should. It can’t hurt, right?”

“Yeah. I’ll call them now.” Anders stands up and goes into the bedroom to make the call. Matt picks Tiny up and puts him in his lap, and Tiny doesn’t fight him. He does start purring when Matt pets him, so he counts that as a success.

Anders comes back out a few minutes later. “They said they’re too busy today, but they can see him at 10 tomorrow,” he says. “I can take him if you can’t get off work.”

“No, I want to go, too. I’ll let Charlie know.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah, I’m sure. He’ll definitely understand, I’m convinced he likes him more than me at this point.” He laughs as if it’s a joke, but knows there’s definitely at least some truth to it.

Anders laughs, too. “He can like both of you, you know. I know I do.” He sits back down on the couch and wraps an arm around Matt, reaching down with his other hand to pet Tiny, too. He purrs louder.

Matt grabs his phone to text Charlie, and as expected, he’s totally fine with Matt missing work. _Of course, no worries. I hope the little guy feels better_ , he texts back. Matt sets the phone down and leans into Anders’ shoulder.

“Hey,” Anders whispers. Matt looks up at him. “He’s going to be fine.”

“I know.”

—

The next morning, Matt and Anders wake up early. Anders makes coffee and breakfast while Matt gets out the cat carrier and puts it together. They haven’t had to use it for a while, so it takes him a minute to remember where they stored it. Coaxing Tiny into it is easier than they expected, they put some treats and one of his favorite blankets inside, and he goes right in with no fussing. Anders holds the carrier in his lap while Matt drives, whispering to Tiny to calm him down. He sticks his finger in through the caged front to try to pet him, but he’s sitting too far back for him to reach.

They make it to the vet and check in, then sit in the waiting room. They’re still about fifteen minutes early. Tiny has quieted down since being out of the car, and now he’s just watching all the other animals in the waiting room with wide eyes. Right on time the vet calls them in.

“Tiny?” she says. Matt and Anders stand up, and Anders picks up the crate so they can follow her back into the room. “You can set him down on the counter here,” she says. Anders puts the crate down and opens the door. Tiny exits cautiously.

“Hi, Tiny! I hear you’re not feeling well.” The vet extends her hand to let him sniff it, and he does, then headbutts her hand. She scratches his chin, then turns back to Anders and Matt. “What seems to be the problem?”

Matt looks at Anders to answer. “He’s all stuffed up, like in his nose,” he tells her. “And he’s been sleeping a lot more, not as energetic as he usually is.”

Right on cue, Tiny has a fit of sneezes.

“Have you made any changes lately? To his diet, or anything like that?”

“We did get a different brand of litter a couple weeks ago,” Matt says. “They didn’t have the kind we usually get.”

A look of understanding dawns on her face. “Was it the lightweight kind?”

“Yeah. Why, is that bad?”

“It can definitely cause respiratory infections. Especially with how stuffy he is, that would be my first suspicion, but let me check him out to make sure.”

She listens to his heart and lungs with the stethoscope, then checks him all over, all while reminding him what a good boy he is.

“It definitely seems like an upper respiratory infection,” she confirms. “There’s a couple things we can do here, I can either give him a shot now, or I can give you a liquid medicine and you can feed it to him at home. The shot would be one and done, but the medicine would be every day for seven days. It’s completely up to you, they would both be just as effective.”

“Can we mix the medicine with food?” Anders asks.

“You can, but you would need to make sure he eats all of it.”

Anders looks back at Matt. “What do you think, love?”

“I’m not sure. The liquid would definitely be less painful, but he can be picky with his food. Do you think he would eat it?”

“Is he picky? I mean, he ate my swordfish!”

“I meant with cat food. I’m not buying swordfish just to give him his medicine.”

“Alright, fair. So, the shot, then?”

Matt nods. “I think that will be better.”

“I’ll be right back with it.” The vet leaves the room and shuts the door behind her. Tiny looks over at the two of them, then wanders to the other side of the counter to investigate.

“Has he had a shot before?” Matt asks.

“I mean, not since we’ve had him, but the paperwork from the shelter said he was up to date when I adopted him,” Anders shrugs. “He probably doesn’t remember.”

“Isn’t that worse? I feel bad. There’s, like, no way we can warn him it’s coming, you know?”

“Matt.” It’s rare that Anders calls him by his actual name, so it gets Matt to look up at him. Anders squeezes his hand. “He’s going to be okay. He’ll do great, I know it. I think you’re more nervous about this than he is.”

The vet comes back with the shot a few minutes later.

“Does one of you want to hold him? It’s usually better if someone familiar is with him.”

“I will,” Anders volunteers. He crosses the room to pick him up, then sits down in the chair across from Matt. Matt looks away while the actual shot is injected, and Tiny lets out a little yelp, but he stays put in Anders’ lap while he pets his head and talks to him to keep him calm. It’s over in a few seconds.

“You did such a good job, Tiny!” the vet praises.

Matt opens his eyes. The vet is washing her hands in the sink, while Anders continues holding on to Tiny. Matt crosses the room so he can pet him too.

“I told you he’d do great,” Anders whispers, and Matt smiles.

“You were right. Should we, I dunno, what’s the cat equivalent of giving a little kid a lollipop?”

The vet overhears him and laughs. “He definitely deserves some treats. He did a really good job, most cats don’t stay still like that.” She opens the cabinet and pulls a bag out.

“Alright,” she says as she holds her hand out for Tiny. He sniffs the treat curiously, then eats it before leaning back into Anders. “He’ll probably be even more exhausted for the next twenty four hours or so while it kicks in, that’s completely normal. Just let him sleep it off. If he’s still stuffy for the next couple days you can take him into the bathroom and turn the hot water on. Don’t put him _in_ the shower, but just keep him in the steam for ten minutes or so. If he doesn’t feel any better in a week, go ahead and call us back, but he should be all set.”

“Thank you so much!” Matt picks Tiny up off of Anders’ lap and puts him back into the crate, then they check out and go back into the car.

A few days later, Tiny is back to his energetic self, and they can both breathe a sigh of relief.


	11. Bad News

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anders gets some bad news from work

It’s pretty early into quarantine when Anders gets the call from work. He’s lying on the couch with Tiny while Matt works in the armchair, when his phone starts vibrating.

“It’s my boss,” he tells Matt. “Hello?” he says as he picks up. “Yeah, sure, one sec.” He stands up and moves into the bedroom, closing the door behind him. Matt turns back to his emails, but finds that although he’s reading them, he can’t focus on what any of them are actually saying.

Anders comes back out a few minutes later, and the look on his face tells Matt everything he needs to know. He lies back down on the couch. Tiny crawls up onto his chest, and he smiles sadly as he reaches up to pet him.

“They’re furloughing me,” he says after a few minutes, and Matt’s heart sinks.

“Oh, honey, I’m so sorry,” he says. “Are you okay?”

“I mean, school’s going remote for the rest of the year, and I can’t do what I do from home, so I guess I didn’t expect them to keep paying me when I’m not working. They’re gonna re-evaluate in the fall for next year.”

“That didn’t answer my question.”

Anders sighs. “No,” he says truthfully. “I’m not.”

Matt stands up and crosses the room to the couch. He picks up Tiny so Anders can sit up, then puts him back in his lap and sits next to him, pulling him into a tight hug. Anders relaxes into him, head resting on Matt’s shoulder. He puts a hand on Matt’s chest, and Matt presses a kiss to the top of his head.

“Sorry,” he whispers, but Matt shakes his head.

“Don’t be.”

“Do you need to get back to work?”

Matt probably does, those emails aren’t going to answer themselves, but he doesn’t want to leave Anders by himself, either. “Not yet, I’m gonna take my fifteen minute break,” he says instead, setting the timer in his phone.

“Thank you.”

They stay in silence, only broken by Tiny’s purring as Anders scratches behind his ears, until Matt’s phone timer goes off.

“Do you want me to set up over here instead?” he asks.

Anders shrugs. “I might just go take a nap.”

“Okay. Let me know if you need anything.”

Matt stands up, offering a hand to Anders, who picks up Tiny with his other arm and goes into the bedroom. Matt kisses his cheek and gives Tiny one more pat on the head before he shuts the door.

He works for a few more hours, then clocks out for his lunch break, but Anders still hasn’t come out of the bedroom, so he digs through the cabinets to see if there’s anything comforting he can make for lunch. He finds a box of macaroni and cheese, so he starts boiling the water, scrolling through his phone while he waits. It doesn’t take all that long to cook the pasta and make the sauce. Once it’s ready, he divides it into two bowls, fills up a big glass with water for Anders, and balances all the dishes on a tray so he can bring it to him. He knocks on the door.

“Honey? You awake?” he asks. Anders makes a noise of acknowledgement from the other side. “Can I come in?”

“Yeah.”

Matt opens the door to find Anders lying down in bed, watching something on his phone with Tiny curled up by his feet. The lamp on his bedside table is on, but all the other lights are turned off, so Matt turns on the overhead light before bringing him the food.

“I made you some lunch,” he says as he sets the tray down in front of him. Anders looks up, smiles when he sees the mac n cheese, then sits up, accidentally waking up Tiny in the process. Tiny just yawns and moves over to Matt’s side of the bed, only to have Matt pick him up and put him in between them so he can sit, too. He eventually just jumps off the bed and goes into his own bed in the corner so he can nap in peace.

“How was your nap?” Matt asks.

Anders shrugs. “I wasn’t really sleeping. I tried to, but I couldn’t.”

“I’m sorry.”

“’S okay.”

“Are you feeling any better?”

Anders puts his fork down and sighs. “I don’t know. I don’t think I’m ready to talk about it yet.”

“That’s okay. I’m here when you are.”

They finish up lunch, and Matt cleans up, before going back to his computer. Anders stays in bed, and Matt’s about to shut the door when he speaks up.

“Hey, love?”

“Hmm?”

“Thank you. For lunch, for… everything.”

Matt smiles at him. “Of course. I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

Matt shuts the door, then gets back to work.

Around 3, Anders comes back out. He’s still in sweatpants and a T-shirt, but different ones than before, and he has the keys to his car in his hand.

“I think I’m going to the Dunkin’ drive thru,” he says. “Do you want anything?”

“I wouldn’t say no to an iced decaf,” Matt says.

“I can make that happen.”

He puts on his shoes, grabs a mask, then he’s out the door. He’s back in ten minutes with both their drinks.

“Thanks,” Matt says when Anders hands the iced coffee to him. “What’d you get?”

“Hot chocolate. I didn’t really want coffee, I just figured I should get out of the house, and Dunks seemed like a good excuse.”

“Makes sense.”

Anders sits down on the couch and takes the lid off the cup to let it cool faster. “I guess - sorry, are you busy?”

“Nope, I’m listening.” Matt stops typing and looks up at him.

Anders rolls his eyes. “Finish your email,” he says, and, okay, he knows Matt too well. He finishes typing it out, reads it over one last time, then clicks send, before looking back up at Anders.

“Done?” Matt nods. “Okay. I guess, I was just thinking in the car, and all day really, and there’s just… so many unknowns, with this. I’m scared of what happens next. Especially, like, with money, it hit me that I don’t have any income anymore, and you’re limited to forty hour weeks, right?”

“Actually, I just got approved to work overtime starting today,” Matt says. “We have a lot of deadlines coming up over the next couple months, so at least for now, I can work more.”

“Really? Oh, that’s good.” Matt can see him relax slightly. “That’s one less thing to worry about.”

Matt finishes his iced coffee, then looks at the cup in confusion. He could have sworn he just started it. Anders stands up to take the cup from him and recycle it, but Matt grabs his hand before he can get too far away.

“Look, I’ll be honest, I don’t know what’s gonna happen next, either. But we’re in this together, and we’ll figure it out. I’m here for you, whatever you need.”

Anders squeezes his hand. “I love you, you know that?”

“I love you, too.”

Anders leans down for a kiss, and smiles when he pulls back. At that moment, Tiny comes out of the bedroom after his nap, hangry and meowing to demand dinner.

Matt laughs. “Somebody’s a grumpy kitty.”

“I guess the good thing about all this is, I can spend more time with you, buddy,” Anders says. “Come on, you want some food?”


	12. Cold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Matt catches a cold, Anders and Tiny both do their part to help him feel better

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is kind of a re-write of my other fic, but in cat AU this time because I haven’t posted anything for it in almost TWO MONTHS and I missed Tiny

When Matt wakes up one weekend morning, his head is pounding, and he can’t breathe through his nose. He groans, which gets the attention of Anders, who has been scrolling through his phone, but he looks up when he hears Matt.

“Morning, love,” he says. “You okay?”

“No,” Matt says. He puts his arm over his head. “I think I’m sick.”

“Oh, no.” Anders reaches over to touch his forehead, and Matt has to adjust his arm slightly so he can reach. “You don’t feel warm.”

“I don’t think I have a fever or anything, it’s just my head. I can’t breathe through my nose.”

“I’m sorry.”

Matt sneezes, and it shakes his whole body. 

“I’m gonna go feed Tiny, do you want me to make you some tea or something?”

“Yes, please. Thank you.” Matt’s definitely more of a coffee drinker, he always has been, but right now a cup of tea sounds lovely.

He waits a few more minutes after Anders leaves the room before he sighs and forces himself to get up. He puts on one of Anders’ hoodies, then pulls the hood up over his head and joins him in the kitchen, filling up a big glass of water for himself and putting a piece of bread in the toaster.

Matt sits down at the table to wait, when he starts coughing heavily. He looks up to find Anders looking back at him, worried.

“Do you want some medicine or something?” he asks. “I’m not sure what we have, but I have to go to the store today anyway so I can get some while I’m out.”

“Probably can’t hurt.” Matt smiles when Anders hands him the mug with the tea. He takes a sip.

“Okay. I’ll see what I can find.”

They finish up breakfast, and Anders volunteers to clean up so Matt can go back to bed. He pokes his head in the door to let him know when he’s leaving, so Matt relaxes back against the headboard and closes his eyes.

He opens them when he hears Tiny jump up on the bed. He smiles and reaches over to pet him.

“Hey, buddy,” he says. “Are you gonna keep me company until Anders gets back?”

Tiny moves his head so that Matt’s scratching his chin instead, then closes his eyes and purrs. He jumps backwards when Matt starts having another coughing fit, then eventually jumps off and runs back into the living room. 

“Wait, come back,” he says hoarsely. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Tiny doesn’t come back, so Matt sinks back down into the pillows and pulls the blanket up to his chin, pouting. He can’t talk, but it was still nice having another living being with him. Now he’s alone.

The door creaks a few minutes later, causing Matt to look up, and he smiles when he sees Tiny is back, carrying his favorite toy in his mouth.

“There you are, come ‘ere, buddy,” Matt says, tapping on the bed.

Tiny jumps back up and puts the toy in Matt’s lap, then looks up at him and tilts his head to the side. Matt picks it up.

“You wanna play?” he asks, shaking it in front of him. Tiny bats at it once, then rubs his head on Matt’s hand. “No? You want pets instead? Okay.” He scratches the top of his head between his ears, and Tiny squints happily. “Why'd you bring me the toy if you didn’t wanna play, huh?”

He stops petting him when he realizes. “Were you trying to cheer me up?” he asks. Tiny can’t answer, obviously, but when he looks down at the toy, then back up at Matt, and blinks, that’s enough of an answer for him.

“Aww, Tiny, you are such a good boy!” he says, reaching back to pet him with both hands. “You’re such a good boy and I love you so much.” Matt can’t help it when the tears start falling. His emotions are already high from being sick, and such a simple act of love means a lot to him. He leans down to hug him and kiss his head, then presses his forehead to the top of his head.

Tiny perks up when he hears the front door open, then he jumps off the bed and runs out to investigate. Matt can hear him meowing and Anders laughing.

“What’s wrong, buddy?” he hears him ask. He laughs when Tiny meows again. “Come on, you wanna go check on Matt?”

Tiny comes back into the bedroom first, followed quickly by Anders, carrying a bag. His face softens when he sees Matt.

“You okay, love?” he asks. “Feeling any better?”

Matt shrugs. “A little, I guess.” He sniffles, then groans when he feels it all the way at the back of his throat. 

Anders sits down next to him, and Tiny jumps up and curls up in Matt’s lap.

“Where’d you get the toy?” Anders asks, and Matt smiles as he holds it out.

“He brought it to me,” he says, still smiling. “I think he was trying to make me feel better.”

“He did? Aww, he loves you so much!” Anders reaches down to pet Tiny, who just purrs louder. Matt can feel it as much as he can hear it. “What a good boy!”

Anders adjusts slightly, rustling the bag, and Matt suddenly remembers the reason he had gone out in the first place.

“What’d you get?” he asks.

Anders’ face lights up. “Oh yeah! Uh, let’s see.” He grabs the bag and starts rummaging through it. “Shampoo because I was almost out, cold medicine, that’s for you, a soda for each of us, and, um...” he looks almost guilty as he pulls the last thing out of the bag.

Matt just stares back at him. “Honey, it’s still October.”

“Okay, so maybe I got a little excited,” Anders says, handing Matt the bag of red and green M&M’s. “Plus, they’re a good movie snack, if you want to watch something?”

“Sure.”

Anders hands him the medicine to take, and the remote to let him pick a movie, while he puts everything else away and gets a bowl for the M&M’s. Matt falls into another coughing fit, causing Tiny to jump off his lap again, but he stays on the bed this time. Anders comes back into the room and sits back down next to him, rubbing his hand on his back. Matt slumps into his shoulder when he’s done.

“I hate being sick,” he mumbles, and Anders rubs his shoulder.

“I’m sorry, love,” he says. “I wish I could make it better.”

“Mmm.”

“Do you wanna watch the movie?”

“Mmm,” he says again, but he picks the remote up and clicks play.

As the movie goes on, and the bowl of M&M’s empties, Matt’s eyelids grow heavier and he snuggles further into Anders’ shoulder. He yawns, and Anders presses a kiss to the top of his head.

“I don’t think I’m gonna make it through this,” he says, and Anders pulls him in closer with both arms. “I’m so tired.”

“That’s okay. You can sleep.”

Matt doesn’t need to be told twice. He registers Tiny cautiously coming back onto his lap before they both fall asleep.

—

He wakes up some time later, he’s not sure how long it’s been, but the movie has ended and Anders has put on a cooking show instead. Tiny is now asleep at his feet.

Matt groans as he wakes up and stretches his neck. He tries to breathe through his nose again, but he still can’t.

“Hey,” Anders whispers. “Feeling any better?”

“Eh, I don’t know,” Matt answers honestly. “What time is it?”

“Like six. Are you hungry for dinner?” Tiny perks up, and Anders laughs. “Not you, buddy. Not yet.”

Matt laughs too before answering. “I could be.”

“How about takeout from the Chinese place?”

“Sounds good to me.”

Anders calls in the order, then they make their way into the living room and sit down on the couch. Matt shivers, so Anders gets him the throw blanket from the chair and hands it to him. Matt leans his head down on his shoulder again, and sighs when Anders starts playing with his hair. That’s one good thing about growing it out, he’s found.

“I’m sorry if I get you sick from this,” he says.

Anders smiles. “It’s okay. If it makes you feel better, then it’s worth it.”

He stands up when the doorbell rings to get the food and puts it onto plates for them, then comes back to the living room and sits back down next to Matt. When they’re done he does the dishes and feeds Tiny (finally), and they end up going to bed shortly after.

Matt wakes up a few days later, happy that he can finally breathe again, but sure enough, his advanced apology ended up being necessary.

“I think I caught your cold,” Anders whispers hoarsely, curling himself tighter around Matt.

“‘M sorry,” Matt mumbles as he rubs his hands on his back. “Probably shouldn’t have cuddled that much, it must have been too close contact.”

Anders shakes his head. “No, it’s okay, it was worth it to make you better. But will you stay home with me today?”

Matt doesn’t have to think about it for long at all, he wants to return the favor and he has some sick time he has to use up, anyway. “Of course I will.”


	13. Moving Forward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anders has one door close, but many more open

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a little bit of plot progression to the next phase of Matt and Anders’ lives! This takes place a little earlier than current, probably back in September-ish, but they are married at this point

Matt gets home from work and shuts the door behind him. They’ve started to let him go into the office once a week, and he’s found he likes the change of scenery, so he has been going in. He stops briefly to scratch Tiny’s chin, then makes his way into the living room, where Anders is watching TV.

“Hi, honey,” he says, leaning down for a kiss.

“Hey,” Anders says when he pulls back. “How was your day?”

“It was good, how was yours?”

“Good. But, uh, I have some news.” Anders fiddles with the tag on the throw pillow nervously.

“You okay?” Matt asks.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Go change first and then I’ll tell you.”

“Okay, if you’re sure.” Matt goes into the bedroom to change quickly, then comes back into the living room and sits down next to him. Tiny jumps up and makes himself comfortable between them.

“Well?” Matt asks.

Anders takes a breath. “Okay, so, the bad news first, I got laid off. They’re not bringing me back.”

“Oh, honey, I’m so sorry.” Matt wraps both arms around him. “I know how much you loved it there.”

“Yeah.” Anders sighs and melts into Matt’s embrace. “They just said it wasn’t worth the risk in case they have to go remote again, which I get.”

“It still sucks for you, though.”

“It does. But the good news is, I think I know what I want to do next.”

“What’s that?”

Anders scratches Tiny’s head, and Tiny purrs happily. “I want to get my masters,” he says eventually. “I want to get an education degree so I can be a teacher. I love working with kids, and I think I’d be really good at it.”

“I think that’s a fantastic idea!” Matt tells him, and he means it. “That would be amazing, you’ll be such a good teacher. Parents are gonna be jealous their kids aren’t in your class.”

Anders giggles. “Thanks, love. I’ve been looking at places to apply and I think I’ve found a few. Some I can even start taking classes as early as January, if I get in.”

“Oh, that would be awesome. Let me know if you want me to help at all with applications.”

“I will.” Anders grabs Matt’s hand and fidgets with his ring. Matt can’t resist a smile, at the symbol that they’re in this together. He can’t wait. He presses a kiss to the top of Anders’ head.

“I love you so much, you know that?” he says. “I’m so happy for you.”

“I know. I love you, too.” Anders turns his head so he can kiss Matt’s lips. “I just hope you’re ready for stressed-student-Anders,” he says when he pulls back.

“Hey, you have to deal with stressed-employee-Matt on a daily basis, I think it’s only fair,” Matt reminds him. “Plus, I met you your senior year of college, so I’ve already had a little experience.”

“Oh, yeah, that’s true.” Anders sighs when Matt runs his fingers down his cheek, then curls in on himself in pain as Tiny walks right across his stomach to get to his other side. Matt laughs.

“Is that really the most efficient way you could have done that, buddy?” he asks. Tiny just blinks back at him. He makes a move to walk back across, but Anders picks him up and moves him himself.

“I think I’m gonna start filling out some of the applications after dinner,” Anders says after another minute. “Will you help me?”

“Of course.”

—

It takes a few weeks, but Anders finally gets all his applications in. The hardest part was getting the transcripts from his undergrad, because no one was in the office because of the pandemic, but eventually he found a number to call, and they got it done. Matt had read over his essays, and despite the way Anders types out the captions on his Instagram posts, he’s very eloquent when it comes to formal writing. He thinks they’re much better than anything he could have written. Now all that’s left to do is wait.

He gets his answer in the form of a hug a few weeks later, but it’s a hug so strong it might as well be a football tackle. It takes every ounce of strength Matt has just to stay on his feet and not take them both down onto the floor.

“I got in!” Anders says, and Matt’s eyes light up.

“Oh my god, congrats, honey! I’m so proud of you!”

“Oh, I’m so happy, I feel like I’m gonna cry!” Anders does look like his eyes are watering up, so Matt hugs him tighter.

“I knew you could do it,” he tells him.

“It’s like, wow, this is really happening, I’m gonna be a teacher,” Anders says as he pulls back from the hug, but he keeps his arms wrapped around Matt’s waist. “Like, this is just step one, and I’m probably gonna have to pick up a part time job or something in the meantime to pay for it all, but the goal is within sight, you know?”

“I know. I’m so proud of you.”

“I’m just, aw, man, I’m so excited, can I kiss you?”

“Of course!”

The words are barely out of Matt’s mouth before Anders leans forward. He misses Matt’s mouth at first with his enthusiasm, but finds it eventually. Matt pulls back first when he starts to not be able to breathe, then smiles up at him, making Anders giggle.

“Well, I think this calls for celebration,” Matt declares. “We’re getting takeout from wherever you want.”

“Wherever I want, you say? How about one of the five star restaurants downtown?” Anders jokes, and Matt flicks his forehead. “I’m just kidding. How about the Italian place down the street?”

“Sounds perfect.”

They place the order, and it doesn’t take too long for it to be delivered, so they get settled in on the couch with their bowls and Anders’ favorite movie on TV. Anders lies down with his head on Matt’s lap once they’re done eating, and Tiny curls up on his chest. Matt uses one hand to pet Tiny and one to play with Anders’ hair, smiling to himself when they react in almost the exact same way.

“When will you be able to register for classes?” Matt asks.

“I’m not sure yet. I just accepted the offer today but I’m sure that’s next.”

“And it’s a two year program?”

“Yeah, and I’ll student teach at the same time for the second year.”

“Nice! That will be good to get the experience.”

“Mm-hmm.” Anders closes his eyes as Matt finds the sweet spot on the back of his scalp, so Matt keeps scratching it gently.

They stay like that for a while longer, until they both almost fall asleep on the couch and reluctantly get up to move to the bed. Matt looks over at Anders as he pulls the covers on.

“Goodnight, honey,” he whispers. “I’m so proud of you. I love you.”

“Thanks, love.” Anders leans over to give him a kiss. “I love you, too.”

As Matt drifts off to sleep, he smiles to himself. He can’t wait to see what the future holds.


End file.
